Copper Price Hits Record $14,617 a Ton on London Exchange

The three month copper futures contract on the London Metal Exchange (LME) reached $14,617 a ton on September 8, a new all time high and the fourth straight day of gains, according to figures cited by Press.rs.

Sources disagree on both the day and the exact figure of the record. South Korea’s Seoul Economic Daily reports that the record was actually set a day earlier, on September 7, at $14,533 a ton, with an intraday jump of 0.8%, surpassing the previous high of $14,527.50 set in January this year. Press.rs, meanwhile, reports that the three month contract rose 0.5% by 11:08 a.m. Singapore time, to $14,581 a ton, with the daily gain touching 0.7% at one point. Whichever figure is accurate, both sources agree the price is at a record level and part of the same four day run of gains.

Copper is up roughly 17% since the start of the year and about 47% compared to the same period 12 months ago. Traders believe the metal could reach $15,000 a ton without much difficulty.

Tariffs, Not Demand, Are Driving the Price

What sets this rally apart from previous copper spikes is that it is not being driven by a sudden jump in consumption but by goods being rerouted. The United States is considering tariffs on imported refined copper, and the U.S. Department of Commerce had a deadline of June 30, 2026, to finish its review and submit a report to the White House. As of September 8, more than two months past that deadline, no decision has been announced.

The uncertainty alone has been enough to push traders to ship large volumes of copper to the United States since the start of the year, aiming to capture the price gap before any tariff takes effect. The effect shows up in inventories: stockpiles at the COMEX exchange in the US have risen eightfold, from about 80,000 tons in February 2025 to 695,624 tons. Outside the US, stockpiles are shrinking at the same time, tightening the market further in Europe and Asia.

“The possibility of tariffs is having a bigger impact on trade than any surplus in end demand,” said Cristian Sifuentes of Chile’s Copper and Mining Studies Center. “This is a case of localized shortages, not a global demand surplus.”

Supply Lags as China Draws Down Stockpiles

On the supply side, the International Copper Study Group (ICSG) reported that global mine production of copper fell 1.1% in the first half of 2026 compared with the same period a year earlier, while output of copper concentrate dropped 2.6%. Weak performance at mines in Chile, the Democratic Republic of Congo and Indonesia accounted for most of the decline.

Chile, the world’s largest copper producer, exported $4.63 billion worth of copper in August, down from $5.37 billion in July, its lowest export level in more than a year. The drop in shipments was driven by operational problems at major mines, declining ore grades and unfavorable weather.

China, the world’s biggest copper consumer, is meanwhile drawing down its own reserves: stockpiles on the Shanghai Futures Exchange have fallen to their lowest level since 2024. If Chilean output fails to recover in the second half of the year, global mine production of copper could post its first annual decline since 2017, according to Bloomberg.

Demand from China is being reinforced by state owned power utility State Grid Corp. of China, which has been increasing its orders.

“The pickup in orders from China points to a continuation of the positive trends for copper,” said Jia Zheng, a trading manager at Suzhou Chuangyuan Harmony-Win Capital Management.

Why Copper Is an Energy Bellwether

Because of its high electrical conductivity, copper is used in semiconductors, batteries and power grids. Analysts expect demand growth in the coming years to be driven largely by three sectors: data centers, renewable energy and grid modernization, with additional consumption coming from electric vehicles. That is why copper prices are increasingly cited as a gauge of the pace of the energy transition, not just as an industrial commodity.

The rally was not confined to copper alone. Zinc rose 1.1% on September 8, aluminum gained 0.1%, and iron ore futures in Singapore climbed 0.8%, to $101.10 a ton.

The next turning point for the market is the U.S. Department of Commerce’s decision on tariffs for refined copper. Until it is announced, traders are expected to keep directing supply toward the American market, and the inventory gap between the US and the rest of the world is likely, based on the pattern so far, to keep widening.